Witch Essentials: Book of Shadows

I’m not by any means a purist when it comes to practicing witchcraft, but there are some things you just can’t do without – one of those is a Book of Shadows. More traditional witches will prefer a literal book, often choosing something extravagant. Which is fine – in all honesty if I had the budget to get a huge leather-bound tome, I definitely would. But writing things by hand isn’t for everyone and online Books of Shadows are a growing thing, either as an online journal, a word document or a public blog. Or if you do enjoy writing by hand (as I do), there’s nothing wrong with just setting aside a notebook to write down spells and rituals. Mine is a handmade one bound in fabric that I found in a beautiful shop in Whitby called Gutsy Gingers at my first Goth Weekend – if I remember correctly, it was about £14 and worth every penny. Whatever you choose, I think it’s important to keep a record of your craft.

At the very least, spells and rituals should be written in your BoS. From a practical point of view, it’s handy to have them at hand if you ever need them again. Spells for things like good luck, healing, success etc. are going to be spells you go back to throughout your life. Also if you use rituals to honour days of power in the Wheel of the Year or any other annual celebrations, using the same rites each year is a lovely way to establish a feeling of tradition. That’s how I started my BoS, also including smaller charms (things like pouches that I made).

Since then I’ve expanded on it; my BoS has become more than just a record of spells, but a reference to pretty much everything I learn in relation to my craft. I’m a little bit eclectic but tend to refer to myself as an Earth witch – basically somewhere in between hedgewitch and kitchen witchery with bits and pieces of other things thrown in. My BoS reflects this, and it’ll be different depending on what kind of craft you practice, what elements you prefer to work with, whether you work more with spirits and so on. For example, I incorporate runes in a lot of my rituals and have a set that I read from time to time, so I have runes and there corresponding meanings drawn in the back cover. From then I have a few pages set aside for writing herbs and their properties (both magical and medicinal), and a few more for pressing leaves and identifying which tree they are from. I add bits as I learn them, so these are less neat than the front pages – for rituals I tend to write them in rough first so I can scribble out and alter things as I go. Writing out the final version in my BoS not only is more aesthetically pleasing (which I have to admit I’m a sucker for), but it’s easier to read if you do use it again in the future.

Long story short: if you’re a witch, some form of BoS will make your practice one hell of a lot easier!